This great split ep by A Sacred Cloud and Anarchist Mountains has been released by the Jeunesse Cosmique & Howl! Arts Collective labels. Both record labels are based in Montreal, Canada. Apparently, the A Sacred Cloud contribution is a live recording of a concert that took place at the Sala Rossa in January 2014. It was a concert organized to support a Pakistan family who couldn't get the refugee status by the Canadian government. The music is very cosmic and abstract (in a good way) and the variety of sound sources used for this recording makes their part of the album an enjoyable ride. Personally, I preferred their second track called ' Run, Run Shaw' because of the heavy use of analog synthesizers in it (it sounds like the Korg Monotron Delay) and also because of the beautiful synthetic arpeggiator that comes in about half way through the piece. I also have a soft spot for improvised flute playing and the two tracks by A Sacred Cloud feature plenty if it! Not all improvised music is good, but in this case the talent is there and the listening experience is good.

Anarchist Mountains side was recorded in an apartment in Montreal (dubbed L'Apartement Cosmique). Their pieces are much more ethereal and ambient, we're almost in new age territory here, and the production is clearer than A Sacred Cloud. The aptly named piece 'Glacier' is indeed reminiscent of the great North while 'Estuary' noisier take on ambient music is different in tones but similar in vibe. The minimal silk screened artwork is beautiful and it comes with a nice cardboard insert. If you're a fan of experimental ambient music, in the same vein as Celer, you'll be pleased by this ep. Note that the album is available for a pay-what-you-want price on Bandcamp.

There's something inherently creepy about Of Earth And Sun's music. The sound of the bone trumpets offered on most of the tracks are spooky to say the least! They are the main ingredient of Matthew Hunzeker's music (the guy behind this project) as you can hear them buzzing throughout all the tracks of Uncoiled. Of Earth And Sun's artistic expression is a cross between well recorded harsh noise (and I stress on 'well recorded'), dark drone and ritualistic music. All the tracks on the album have been recorded live, which is an accomplishment in itself, especially when you consider all the computer based music that is released nowadays. Maintaining that kind of intensity throughout the nine tracks is impressive, it gives a sens of authenticity to a kind of music that can easily sound generic when produced on computers. Furthermore, the use of acoustic elements really ads texture and depth to the album. Also at play here are oscillators, vocals and a drum machine. While I can clearly distinguish the vocals in the music, the oscillators play a much more subtle role as it seems to be used to reinforced the buzzing tone of the bones trumpets by adding a much needed sub bass to the tracks (as heard on 'Antahkarana' and 'Consuming Of The Illusory Body'). On other pieces, the oscillators are used in both the low and high frequency range as it is the case in the sublime 'Veil Of Illumination' track. Of Earth And Sun's music could easily be the soundtrack of an horror film featuring cannibal rites. This is deep music that will certainly please drone fans as well as anyone interested in hearing something different and well constructed. If I had one complaint to do, is the similarity between the tracks, which makes a very coherent album but at the same time it lacks a bit of variety. That being said, I think it wasn't the point, the idea here was to create a chilling and intense sonic experience, something that transcend the body to bring you to another place and another state of mind. From this point of view, Of Earth And Sun's Uncoiled is an outstanding success. I can easily picture myself listening to this music while reading 19th century occult books about ghosts and witchcraft. Highly recommend!

Niton's music is engaging experimental music at its best. I have to say that I have a soft spot for music based on analogue synthesizers, and Niton's latest album, 'Tiresias', offers just that and more, adding mystic pipes, various objects that produce sounds, a six strings banjo and a cello to the mix. On their second album, the trio created what could easily be the soundtrack of an apocalyptic movie: dark tones abounds, strange noises unfolds sparingly and the musician's playing is tense. Niton's equipment list consist of various legendary vintage synthesizers, among them the Roland SH-101, the Memorymoog, the Korg MS-20 and the frail Korg Poly 800. While the gear is vintage, the music on Tiresias is timeless. However, the opposite could have been true due to the vintage nature of the gear (for instance, an analog sequencer from the seventies is used), but the sound production is both modern and flawless. Everything sound bold and deep giving the album a very contemporary sound. Xelius, one of the band's member, did a great job mastering the album and his experience as a sound technician certainly helped a lot on that aspect. Conceptually, the band's approach was to make different sound sources collide into a continuous flow of live electronic. Hence the classical strings 'conversing' with the analogue synthesizers and noise objects (a heater, some springs and a fan). Most of the tracks on the album evolve into a very pleasurable cathartic ending. It really shows that it took fifteen months of work to compose and record the album. Each piece is well thought out and develop in a natural way. What we have here is a rich in tones and atmosphere album, easy to listen to and superbly produced.

Bahar is the fifth album by New England based Idm artist Derek Piotr. Previous efforts were praised by highly respected publication such as XLR8R, and for good reasons. The music produced by Piotr is well executed, polished and original, the latest being a rare thing nowadays, especially in electronic music where a lot of music is based on preconceived formulas. Piotr's music consist of manipulated vocal sounds, reminiscent of Bjork's Medúlla album, except that Piotr ads electronic production and four woodwind players to the mixe, making Bahar a quite different affair. If I would try to spot influences, I would say that it's similar in style as AGF, who coincidentally did the beautiful artwork of the album. The added woodwinds, while not ubiquitous, enriches Piotr's sound palette and ad something different to an album that would be otherwise colder in tones. The classical influence won't please everyone, but I've found it refreshing. Furthermore, Piotr's voice is enjoyable, never harsh or detuned on purpose. Overall, Bahar is a good album of quality electronic music. Cory Allen did a great job on the mastering. The only drawback is that the album only last half an hour, which is a bit short. Otherwise, this is a pleasant album for fans of Idm and experimental electronic music. Standout tracks: Day Residue, There Shall Be A New Earth and Tennis.

Simon Crab has been making music since the late seventies and he is the founder of the experimental band Bourbonese Qualk, which was dismantled in 2002 when the band's guitarist died. Crab is now a member of Sunseastar, a musique concrete band, as well as the London's Gamelan orchestra. The music he creates is the outcome of his experience: "After America" is dense, rich in tones and superbly produced. The album is reminiscent of Bourbonese Qualk discography, being eclectic and mastered at the same time, something not a lot of people can accomplish. Simon Crab learned traditional African and Middle Eastern music and it shows: you can clearly hear that he's a knowledgeable musician, the rhythms on the album are skillfully carried out, be it live played or electronic. Crab also has the ability to fuse the acoustic with the electronic in a very natural way. Everything fits very well together

On this first solo effort, Crab mixes traditional tribal percussion with deep electronic tones (using SuperCollider among other tools) and sound collage with thick layers of acoustic and electronic rhythms. The result is exciting to say the least, and the sonic landscapes on the album have a truly immersive effect because of the quality of the recording. Some of the tracks are definitely beat oriented while others are ambient and sometimes even melodic! My favorite track being a melodic almost idm affair: 'For Jian-an' could have been written by Aphex Twin or Multiplex (Christian Dormon and Roland Dormon). While he juggles with multiple genre of music of various origins (occidental electronic music, traditional African rhythms, Indonesian gamelan ensemble music), every track is well executed. Various genre also means various instruments, mixed with electronic music, we can hear guitar, clarinet, acoustic drums, synthesizers, congas, bongos, accordion, flute and more.

While I've never heard of Simon Crab before, I was pleasantly surprise by the quality of this album. Overall, this is an excellent release beautifully produced by Simon Crab himself.

Standout tracks: For Jian-an, Kropotkin, Cobra Mist.